One Two Three
by BTES
Summary: Almost ten years after the nightmare, Jak is flung back into the thick of it. There, he finds something that may just add fuel to the fire.
1. Living Nightmare

He walked the empty halls and broken walls of the fortress with a non to pleased look plastered on his face. His eyes darted at each new flickering light as they blasted a glow of green at him. They caused him to almost flinch as old memories played back.

A reassuring pat on the shoulder was enough to keep him focused on the task. A new long string of words that erupted into the stagnant air helped too.

"I swear, sometimes Torn just pisses me off!" Daxter grumbled with a trimble of his small body. The ottsel scratched at his fuzzy, orange ear absently. His blue eyes copied Jak's as they too darted from side to side, periodically chancing a glance at Jak.

"Go to the fortress', he said. 'There's something screwy', he said. I'd like to put something screwy up his.."

"Shhh!"

Daxter fell silent at Jaks request. His eyes followed his friends direction and he ohed.

Before them was the door to the testing area.

Jak gulped and reached to shove the door over. His whole body was resemblance to a spring that very much wanted to get loose. He was holding a breath at the scene he was about to see. Soon, he just closed his eyes.

The door opened with a mechanical whoosh and the putrid, dark eco smelling air soon surrounded him. The felling of bile climbing up his throat caused Jak to gag. It was too much, even after nine years, too much!

Daxter looked over the room as well and gulped before taking the plunge. He hopped off of Jaks broad but slightly trembling shoulders and took the first steps into the slowly brightening room.

His eyes wandered over the cells first. They were all copied to the exact, finished with scratches that still gleamed against the green glow. Some showed more wear than the others. This was evidence to the favorites amongst the 'test subjects'. One was completely shiny. It belonged to the utmost favorite.

Jak.

Daxter gulped and looked up at his friend as he joined him. Jak's usually tan face was now white and splotchy. His sky blue eye's looked in one direction. His large hands were tightly wrapped around his gun at the gun was practically hugged to his chest. His green blond hair, which was usually so well kept in its alternating brades that varied in shape and size, was in complete disarray from all the times he ran his fingers through it

Daxter took his eyes away from his friend to settle them on the thing that caused nightmares today.

It was the chair and it was, for lack of a better word, smooshed. The huge machine that had the reservoir of dark eco had simply fallen from its place. There were small dents in the mettle and a few gashes that expelled vary small streams of dark eco into the fathoms below.

"Jak?"

The man flinched at Daxter's voice. When he sent the ottsel a half hearted glare, he found a hopefully reassuring smile directed back at him.

"Maybe we should do what we were asked to do and get it over with. I have to give mister eats nails for breakfast a stern talking to."

Jak nodded as a small smile replaced the glare. He then lifted his gun from his chest and brandished it before him. It along with Daxter was able to set him on his mission.

He searched the area, going from cell to cell with his gun held to shoot. His body now tightened as it readied itself for a fight if any kind.

Then a blur or white flashed in the corner of his peripheral vision.

His head whipped to the right. "Did you see that?"

"No, what? What is it. Jak, we should leave, NOW!"

Daxter was ignored as Jak made a beeline for where the white flash had gone.

He was about to point the gun at whatever chose to call this room it's home when his whole body locked and the bile chose to make a comeback.

Before them was a creature that was somewhat shaped like a child. Its skin was white with violet blotches, its hair the color of bone. One horn adorned its head while the other looked like someone had tried to chop it off. Its body had a slight angle in it that wasn't suppose to be there, like an animal with its back arched up, and its left leg looked to be slightly shorter than its right. Its right arm was completely off, shriveled up to a small nub with a sharp fingernail.

The only things that were normal were its right leg, its left arm and claw covered hand, and its head which sported black eyes that looked like Dark's. They held a warning in them, stay away.

Jak herd Daxter's gulp beside his leg and he echoed the action. He flinched again when his comm. went off, Torn's voice blasting through the speakers.

 _"Well, did you find out the problem yet?"_

To this new noise, the creature yowled and hissed. Jak was quick to grab the comm. and shut it off. He placed in on the floor along with his gun.

"What the hell Jak," Daxter whispered in panic as Jak lowered himself to his knees. "You trying to get us killed!"

Jak shook his head and sent a pointed glance at the creature. Daxter, being able to speak 'Jaknese' as he called it, figured out his plan and lamented with a sigh. He laid down on his belly and tried to appear as small as possible.

The creature stopped its hissing but started to growled instead. Its back arched even more as it tried to appear bigger in contrast to Daxter.

Jak took it one step further. He picked a knife from a sheath tied to his waist and brought it up to his palm. He then pressed it and drug it across his skin until a small pool of blood was gathered in his hands. Despite the light eco in his system, his blood was still a violet color.

The creature stopped growing too and raised its head up. Its small nose scrunched up at the scent of dark eco and soon it was intrigued. Slowly, it inched forward with its eyes on Jak as though he'd suddenly move to cause it harm.

When it reached his hand, it brought up its own good one and placed its clawed pointer finger into the brimming blood. It retracted its finger and smoothed the blood between its finger and thumb. It then licked the blood off of its thumb. It placed its finger back into the blood and looked at Jak as it seemed to fumble its lips.

"Hhhhhhuuuu hurrrr, hurrrssss. Hurss."

"Hurt." He offered. The creature nodded.

Jak let his fingers spread and the blood fell away into a puddle on the floor. The cut was now gone and replaced by new flesh. The creature blinked at this and ran its finger over the flesh in awe.

"Not hurt." Jak whispered. He then placed his hand, the one not covered in blood, on his chest. "Jak."

The creature's eyes scrunched up and copied the action. This lead Jak to see that it was wearing a black shirt that appeared to be much too big. It also had a collar around its neck that had 'DB208' printed on the side.

"Jak." He repeated, patting his chest.

The creature's eyes widened and pointed at him. "Jak." It patted it own chest in understanding. "Mmayit." (May-ee)

Jak nodded with a small smile. He then pointed at Daxter. "Daxter."

It, or Mmayit, smiled too. It seemed odd to look at with its large fangs, extremely pale face and black eyes, but it still seemed to brighten them up.

"Da-da-Daster!"

A smile from Daxter was her reward and, even though it was strained and his fur was fluffed up, he slowly pushed himself from the ground and took several steps closer. Mmayit did notice this. Its ears twitched in discomfort and it shrank away slightly but altogether stayed in it's spot.

Jak gained its attention again when he said another word while pointing at himself and Daxter.

"Boy," He said. "Boy."

Mmayit got what he was saying faster and patted there chest. "Girl!"

It was now the moment of truth. Jak started to reach out to the girl. She watched his unbloodied hand in its journey. When one finger brushed her skin ever so slightly, she hissed and took a few steps back.

Jak also pulled away but then reached out again. This time, he was successful in his endeavors and placed a hand on her left arm. Mayyit shivered at the new warm contact and made a whimpering sound, but did not pull away. So Jak went further and moved his hand from her shoulder to her back.

Her back was also different. It was not smooth under the shirt but very bumpy from ridges that poked from her spine. If he pressed against the cloth, he could feel small spikes poke through. The ribs were also vary noticeable, sticking out so shockingly that they could be felt through the thick material.

Mmayit stayed completely still as his hand went further down and slammed her eyes shut when he got to the end of the small of her back.

Jak hooked his fingers slightly and started to drag her closer. When he was sure that she wasn't going to claw at him or try to run, he quickly pulled her into his arms and against his chest in an odd hug.

"Safe."

Mmayit was stiff for a while but slowly melted into his arms and hid her face into his neck.

"Soooo," Daxter said finally. He was at his full two feet, ten inches height with a vary broad and slightly winded smile on his face. "Can we go now?"

Jak chuckled at his friend, location all but forgotten, and stood with Mmayit still in his arms. The young girl wrapped her good arm around his neck for support.

"Sure. Torn's probably waiting for our report."

Daxter made a noise of annoyance and crawled up Jak's body to get to his perch. He sat down with a plop while being mindful of Mmayit's arm.

"Torn shmorn! Who cares about that blowhard. No, I just want to get out of here and I'm sure the kid does too. Wonder why she's hear in the first place?"

Jak nodded and turned to go out the way they had come. When Daxter complained, Jak reminded him if the addition by hefting Mmayit up a little. Taking her through warp ring would put them and anybody on the other end in danger.

When they got outside, Jak rubbed his hand on Mmayit's back ever so slightly. As they traveled through the fortress, she refused to remove her head from his neck and he was pretty sure that she had her eyes closed.

Mmayit pulled away and opened her eyes to squents. As she got use to the new light, her eyes widened. As her eyes widened, so did her mouth. He knew the feeling. After being stuck in a dark cell for two years, when he got outside to see that wonderful sun.

He could have died then and there.

It however, made him think. Has she ever seen the sun or any natural light for that matter. He had never seen a child so young in his days as a prisoner. Heck, the girl couldn't be anymore than eight, nine, ten?

Had she been in there her whole life? And if she had, who was taking care of her. She may be extremely skinny but, if someone hadn't been there, she would have more than likely died.

Jak pushed down the questions for later and stepped away from the place that made nightmares with one cradled in his arms. Right now, he had to get the child to someone who could help them understand.

That and he had a very likely vary pissed Torn to deal with.

* * *

Hello all

So, I'm not entirely sure if I'll actually continue this. It was a story that simply popped into my head and I had to get it down.

The reason I'm not sure is because of my other story and if I do continue it, it wouldn't be as often because its not first priority.

The reason I thought this idea up was because Jak literally cannot be the only person who survived this. I get why he did and how he did, but by how, he shouldn't be the only one.

Now, I don't want to make an oc that had been overused by throwing them in at Jak 2 to be tested on like Jak had. I wanted it to be slightly different and thought of Mmayit, whose name meen dead in Arabic. The DB208 stands for dark baby, a child born from a woman who was a part of the DWP.

So, tell me what you think. Is it ok, do you have critiques, should I continue?


	2. Chapter Two

It was funny to see the girl try to sneak out of his arm to get a better look at the city that surrounded them. Even Daxter was trying not to laugh out loud at the awed look that spread on her pale face.

It was hard however, to keep her from jumping onto the street. To say that he was glad that he made it in the Freedom Fighters HQ was a huge understatement.

Jak walked into the front and quickly made it to a small room that was made for an officer's overnight stay. It was white and large with a nice bed that had light blue sheets and covers. It also had a nice light blue pillow to match.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Mmayit surprised him by lightly kicking his stomach and literally launched herself onto the bed. From there, she completely wrecked the room.

First, she scaled the walls, her claws latching on anything they could.

Then, she hid under the bed. Her teeth gnashed against the mettle and left little dents.

Next, she hid under the blankets and gave a loud yelping noise as they flew up and floated back down. Each time it did, she'd wiggled underneath and squealed.

Her actions reminded him of a muse.

Daxter seemed to think along the same lines because he hopped onto the bed and wiggled the blanket out for her. With each one, she squeaked and lunged at it from underneath.

"Hehe, funny kid!"

Jak watched the scene before him as he brought out his comm. He dialed a number and felt the thing vibrate in his fingers. Soon, a soft voice filled the air. Mmayit hissed from under the blanket and reeled back until she bumped into the wall. Daxter, who was on her back at the time, fell with a yelp.

"Hey Jak, whats up?"

Jak flinched at the reaction and made to move out of the room.

"Watch her for me Dax."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, go talk to your girl."

Mmayit's head popped out from the blanket. "Girl?"

He sent her a smile over his shoulder and stepped out of the room.

"You still there, Keira?"

"Yeah. Whats up. You know Im busy on racing season."

"I know but I have a problem. I need you to come here for a bit."

She sounded confused. "Why? Whats going on Jak?"

He shook his head. "I can't explain everything over the comm. All you need is that I found a kid that I need you to watch for me. Can you?"

She was hesitant to answer him but when she did, she sounded somewhat annoyed.

"Sure thing, Jak. I'll be there in ten."

Jak grinned. "Thanks Keir, this means a lot."

He hung up and stepped back into the room only to find that it was in shambles.

The cover was torn to shreds, the walls had large slashes on them, even the pillow was proofed with feathers floating around. Mmayit laid in the center of the mess underneath a square of the blanket with Daxter in the crook of her arm.

The ottsel looked completely annoyed at the fact that he was being used as a doll for the girl. His brows down and his tail thumped in his irritation. When he noticed Jak in the door, he growled loudly, causing the now sleeping girl to shift.

"Next time, You watch the kid!"

After Keira came in and the story was explained to her, the woman was glad to watch the sleeping child. It made him feel better knowing that the disfigured girl had someone to watch and keep her safe while he was gone. It brought a smile to his face just thinking about it.

The smile, however, was soon whipped away by the angry looks of the two FF soldiers glaring down at him. Both Torn and Ashelin pounced on him with growls and grumbles soon as look at him. Jak was just lucky that Daxter was with him or the two wouldn't have shut their traps.

"Hey, hey, HEY! Where the hell is our gratitude? We just went down Nightmare Lane and back with the thing that was causing the problems and you don't thank us!? What the hell!"

It went silent for a few moments until Ashelin took a deep breath.

"Thank you, you two. Now, about that… thing"

Jak growled deep in his throat. "She is not a thing. Her name is Mmayit and she's a little girl.

Ashelin humphed but continued as though Jak didn't just bare his teeth in anger at her.

"I would like to know where you found her, exactly. I would also like for you to tell me anything you can about her behavior."

Jak nodded and Daxter answered the first question.

"We found her in the cells of the testing area."

"Was it locked up?," Torn asked.

"No, she, wasn't."

Jak took over seamlessly, as though his words were a continuation of Daxter's.

"She was wandering around when she saw us. The first thing she did was run to a cell."

Ashelin nodded. "What about the way she acted?"

"Scared, defensive, she acted like an animal backed into a corner. I was able to calm her, but I had to cut myself to do it."

Torn looked rather surprised. "Cut yourself, why?"

"I thought that she would react to the dark eco in my blood. She didn't though, only point out that I had been hurt."

"She's no good at talking either. The kids like ten, but talked like a one year old.," Daxter added.

Jak reached into his pouch and drew out the collar that had been around the child's neck and slid it across the table to the two. Torn picked it up and raked his eyes over the leather and metal plate.

"DB208?"

Jak didn't answer his question even though he knew what it meant. It was a serial number meant to keep track of a prisoner. He had one himself, DWP429. It just meant that he was part of the Dark Warrior Program and was the 429'nth person to be in it.

"Vin, look up DB208."

A beep sounded softly from the air and then Vin, a computer eight-bit program that had at one time been flesh and blood, popped in the middle of the table. Well, his head did. He didn't make any other sound at first but when another beep filled their ears, he started to talk in a stressed, and slightly crazed, laced voice.

"It's a serial number from the Dark Baby wing. Not a program itself like the Dark Warrior Program, it was made to house the babies that had been born from the test subjects. Most died, but some of them survived. They only got a collar after their first year of life. This one, DB208, belonged to a fourteen year old boy who died of suffocation shortly after the DWP was discontinued."

"Tell me if I'm wrong," Daxter started with an amused grin. "But I don't think that Mmayit is a fourteen year old boy who's dead."

Vin made a noise of intrigued and turned to Daxter.

"Thats a word in a dead language. It means, Dead."

"So, the kid's name is dead? Who names a kid dead?"

"Does it matter.," Jak said. "Why is she still there? The DWP has been over for almost ten years. She would have been catalogued and then disposed of for how she looks. But shes still hear?"

Vin hummed and gave everyone a look of consideration. "Where is this kid? Can I see her?"

"Yeah, Just don't go showing your face there, shock therapy. She probably won't be to happy to see you."

"Noted."

When the meeting finished and Jak went back to gather the girls, he decided to take Mmayit to the one place who he knew would accept her.

Spargus.

It was a tough decision to make for him. With a child like her, living in a place that was constantly up in arms and ready to act, stress would skyrocket and her instincts of survival would triple. He wouldn't be surprised if she attacked soon as get there.

He also knew how it felt like to live in Haven City being who he was. Those who never even seen him change into dark showed fear, practically reeked of it. They all shied away and jumped when he spoke. Some would even deny him at shops or restaurants; the only place he could really go without fear of discrimination was the Naughty Ottsel.

Who would make a child live through that?

Jak and Daxter dropped Keira at her home and went on to the bar. Tess woke up just to greet them and their new addition.

Jak guessed it was because of Daxter, but Mmayit was quick to warm up to Tess. The kid was enthusiastic to try at her name, it took her a few tries with the T sound, and when she achieved it, she practically jumped ten feet in the air. Tess took the whole thing in stride, even saying that the kid was adorable.

Tess then got the girl some food. Mmayit ate ravenously. Every ounce was devoured in seconds and she still wanted more. The girl was only stopped when she had three helping of food that wasn't easily sneered at.

When it came time for bed however, things became problematic.

Mmayit loved Tess in the very short time she knew her. So, when she started to yawn, she scooped up the woman and curled around her like she had with Daxter before. Tess didn't mind, but Dax threw a fit about the child stealing his girl.

It took a whole ten minutes to drop the subject, and it was only dropped when Tess promised an extra sweet snuggle in the morning.

That was just gross.

Night passed quickly and day arrived making Jak somewhat giddy. He really missed Spargus and its rustic lifestyle. It highly reminded him of Sandover during its calm times. With the heat on his back, the man felt like even lifting a finger was done so with pride.

After a quick meal( Mmayit ate at a slower pace this time) and a call to Ashelin, Keira, and Torn as to where they were going, Jak and Daxter went on to the air train with the child in tou. They caught the train just in time too.

Mmayit was surprisingly well behaved in the air train and with two other people, that was saying something.

She did growl a lot though.

It made Jak think. The child obviously never attacked people before and showed some fear when the two Wastelanders that were with them moved even a finger. It really made Jak think that whoever raised her, and he used that loosely, didn't stand for that type of behavior.

It was probably a man who watched her from how she acted with Tess and Keira. Mmayit did not show any hostility toward either and was fast to befriend them both. He had to show her his blood and a cut on his hand to let her know he meant her no harm.

From what he got from Vin's ramblings Mmayit was more than likely born as she was. Disfigured and dangerous, one would expect that as soon as she was born someone would have her disposed of. The man who took her in, however, kept her a secret from his superiors and others.

During his time in prison, Jak never saw pregnant women. It was something that was 'taken care of' before any females were placed into the program. It confused him gravely since she was more than likely conceived in the two years that he was in prison.

The train landed, the door opened, and the two others left. This caused him to halt all thought and pull the child into his arms with Daxter setting on his shoulder. He knew that once the girl was out of earshot, he, Daxter, and hopefully Sig would talk about the why's.

Mmayit immediately burrowed her face into his neck when Jak picked her up. This was short lived though with the new area. The hot and dry air settling on skin and angry sun boiling blood, she showed her bounds of curiosity.

The man noticed that her pupils were shrinking vary slowly. In the time she was out of the dark prison, only a thin ring of brown appeared around the black.

It wasn't that long that he was able to look though. Her head whipped around to look at everything. It went so fast that one might think that her head would just spin off.

"You'd think that the kid needed ten eyes."

Jak chuckled in agreement as he walked further into the walls of Spargus. Mmayit's eyes went wider and, though she huddled closer to Jak's chest, she looked at each thing she possibly could.

When Jak was in the city a monk came up to him and bowed. Jak growled at the monks bow but just ignored him as he followed.

"Hey, rubber router, why don't you go get Seem for us, thanks."

The monk made a type of sound in the back of his throat and went to do as Daxter said in a flash. This caused the ottsel to chuckle.

"Man, don't I love to be a god. It makes everything feel better, ya know. They actually listen for once."

"Yeah well, I'd rather them leave me alone."

"Alone?"

Jak and Daxter both glanced down at the child. Her voice sounded small, as though she were scared.

"Yeah," Jak answered softly. He hiked her up so that her face was leveled with his own. "Alone."

The girl made a small noise.

"Don't worry kid, you'll be with someone at all times. Not alone."

"Not alone.," She whispered. She sounded happier too as she went back to her looking.

Hello.

Now, I need to apologize for the quality of this. Most of this was written in small bursts and it is kinda all over the place, or so I felt.

I do really like this story and wish to continue it. Again, I may not push out chapters like KO, but I will work on it when I can.

I absolutely love Mmayit. She's a little hard to write but is still fun to explore.

Anon: thanks, I really did want to do something that I haven't seen yet and am happy to know that I was able to get it. Mmayit is a sweet little thing and, personality wise, cute. Thanks for the complement!

deducetheworld: thanks for the compliment and everything else. I appreciate the advice.


	3. Chapter three

Mmayit was bored.

It wasn't really all that hard to see why, seeing how the three waited on a large rock just beside the ocean. Both Jak and Daxter have summarised that the child had the ability to entertain herself easily with any odd or end within the prison walls.

Being out here, with so many Wastelanders, however, the girl wouldn't stray more than a few feet from her new companions. If she did take one step too far she would limp back and attach herself to Jak's leg.

After requesting Seem's time, Jak moved his small group to the sands by the ocean in hopes of helping to dispel the tension in the girl's shoulders. He knew that it wouldn't help that much. He also knew that Seem could find him easily. This was his favorite spot in the city after all.

Daxter was talking about anything from Tess, his favorite subject, to the heat, his second favorite, as Jak watched Mmayit sway in time with the rolling waves that came in from the sea beyond. Her pupil covered eyes would widen then shrink with each inch that the water gained.

Daxter clicked his tongue loudly to show he was finished with the idle talk and was happy to move to more serious conversation.

"Ya know," He started as he rested his chin on one of Jak's shoulders and let his feet hang limp over the other. "Those claws a'hers might become a problem."

Jak nodded already knowing what Dax was getting to. He pulled out a knife from a pocket in his boots and called out the girls name. Her reaction was instantaneous as her head whipped around so fast that Dax wandered if she got whiplash.

With her attention, Jak patted his lap as an invite. The child didn't waste time in taking it and hopped onto his knee with a large smile. He returned it and showed her the knife from her inspection.

It was a tiny thing really. Made of the gem from a Metalhead's skull; it was meant for a last resort of protection and surprise. The hilt was made of precursor metal and shaped in a very simple way.

When the girl finished her go-over of the knife, Jak stuck out his thumb, placed the knife on his naile and placed enough pressure on it for it to bite into the nail and cut it off in one smooth motion.

Mmayit and Daxter both watch him cut each nail off in an assortment of amazement and boredom. As he finished the the last nail, Mmayit was eager to hold out her hand.

Once Jak actually had her hand and placed the knife to her claw like fingernail the child started to become nervous. Dax was quick on the uptake and started to talk.

"Hey, kid. You know, we should probably take care of that crows nest of hair growing on your head. I mean, it's nice and all but, I don't think that knots are in anymore."

With the girl distracted Jak began to cut off the claws one by one.

"We could go with the buzz cut or the bob; any of them are good. How long is your hair? Should attack it with a brush… or a pair of scissors."

"Done."

The child blinked at the addition of Jak's voice and then looked down at her hand. She grinned at the now clawless fingers and lifted then up to scratch her cheek. She then scratched her shoulder, Jak's shoulder, his knee, her leg, and finally Daxter's back.

As she reduced the ottsel to a puddle, Jak made a quick glance of the area. To his surprise Sig was striding over with a generous smile. Jak sent him a small wave which was returned.

"Hey big guy!," He said once Sig was close enough. Mmayit reacted immediately to this and attached herself to his chest with her one arm tightly coiled around his neck. Daxter shot up to his shoulder and grinned wildly. "How'd you know we were here?"

Sig chuckled at the obvious question and stopped a few feet away; his eyes stopping on the kid who was trying her hardest to become one with Jak's shirt.

"Not much goes on round here without my knowing, Cherries, and you coming back is rare at best."

Jak started to rub at the back of neck underneath the girl's arm; he always felt guilty over not spending more time in Spargus, but with his spending more of his time with Keira and Daxter along with all of the missions Torn sent him on. He forced his arm back to the girls back and looked at her.

"Who's this?," Sig asked. Mmayit took her head from Jak's chest for a moment so she could hiss in displeasure at his face and then hid it again.

"Her name is Mmayit.," he answered. He started to rack his newly cut nails along her back to calm her. The girl made a small humming noise and relaxed a bit. "I thought that she may be better off heir away from the scrutinizing eyes of Haviners."

Sig nodded in understanding. "Sure, Seem's at the temple right now. The monks that you talked to went out to get her and won't be back with her for a day or two. Till then, you chilli-pepers should come on to the palace."

Jak was already on his feet. He shifted Mmayit so that she sat on his arm then gestured for Sig to go. He followed in silence as Daxter took up the mantle to fill up the silence. Most of what he spoke about was the general goons of the bar and anything that he knew that Jak had done. Sig seemed to be on autopilot while he listened. He only asked a few questions in response.

When they reached the palace and got into the throne room, Sig sank down into the throne. "So, tell me about the Little-bit."

Jak knelt and placed Mmayit down. She kept as close as she could but sent the other man a calculating stare.

Jak started talking about everything from the last few days, Daxter filled in the various missing spots, leaving Mmayit to watch this Sig.

To her, this new person was too big to be real. The Jak was shorter and less bulky and the Daxter was very tiny. Despite this, Mmayit could feel the power come off them. It was the same sense of power she felt when she hunted her pray.

This new person, man, was just too big, but with less power. More power than her, but less power. The way the Jak talked to him though was the same as he talked to the Daxter and herself. Could he be trusted?

Jak finished Mmayit's story and glanced down at the child. She was very slowly inching closer to the throne. Sig also noticed and kept as still as possible except for his mouth so he could talk.

"Some tail there Chilli-pepers. Why Seem though?"

"Mmayit is full of dark eco. She doesn't know how to control it and won't trust any guy to teach her that isn't willing to show her a weakness. Samos can teach her just fine but he wants to be the authority. Is he tries that with her, she'll skin him alive."

"Yeah!," Daxter pitched in. "She'll be willing and is a chick!"

Mmayit kept looking back and forth between Jak and Sig as she got closer and closer Sig. Sig didn't so much as twitch as she did this. So, when she did get to Sig's knee, neither man was surprised.

It was a very quick transaction from overly cautious to not at all as the girl hiked herself up onto Sig's lap and halfway up his chest to look at the armor on his shoulders. She stared at it and then started to poke at it as if it would move on its one.

Sig chuckled and shifted his arm and shoulder to go lower for her. She flinched at the movement but then went back to her inspection.

"What did you say her name was again?" Sig went on his own inspection of the child as she went from one shoulder to the other. She didn't poke this shoulder but stared intently into the eyes of the dead beast.

"Mmayit."

"One hell of a name for a kid. Dead, who names a kid that."

"You knew the name? How, I thought it was from a dead language?"

"A lot of languages that have died make new ones that either get used or die along with the first. Some of the old mix in. Mmayit is one of them; the desert nomads call there dead that all the time."

Jak nodded and Daxter jumped down as Mmayit got bored with Sig. She turned her eyes onto the room around her, spotted the small body of water, and slinked on over. When her head was hanging over the edge she dunked it. Daxter walked over and sat next to her with a vary watchful eye.

"Nomads… how does a word uses by the nomads become a name for a girl who can't be any older than ten? The Barren never let nomads into the city during his rule."

Mmayit emerged from the water and shook her head of the droplets. Daxter was showered.

"Some of the families that became citizens before had children who were taught the language. Whoever named her must have a nomadic lineage."

"Hey," Daxter suddenly jumped back up onto Jaks shoulder. He was soaked from fuzzy head to fuzzy tow and looked a bit irritated. "I'm starved, need food."

Jak sighed and looked back at the girl who was now smoothing her sopping hair down. Some of the knots were brushed through with her fingers and others stayed in place.

Damn, he completely forgot about food. He knew that he could go a few days without a bite. He didn't need to feed Daxter, his friend knew how to keep himself fed. A child though, he had to actively care, cloth, and feed her.

Sig grunted and pointed down the hidden hall off to the side. "Go on Cherries, go rest and I'll send some food in for you. We'll talk later."

Jak chuckled as he walked over to Mmayit and picked her up. Daxter moved as her arm wound about his neck. "Back to business then?"

"Don't you know it Chilli-pepers!"

* * *

Torn groaned in annoyance for the umpteenth time that night as Vin's manic sounding voice go on and on and on.

"Report of DB142. Male. Birth defects, no arms, no legs, no eyes, no tongue. Enhanced hearing and..."

On the screen before him, a picture of a child swaddled in a small cot with about three others came forward. The boy had a bind over his eyes and a small clump of flesh on the tip of the left ear, a defect that wasn't mentioned.

He groaned again as Vin kept going.

Torn had finished off work late, late enough that the sun was gone and the moon could bee seen over the HQ easily. With a sigh of joy he got up and went on home.

When home, he imagined, he would kiss his daughters sleeping heads and then climb into bed with his wife and fall asleep himself until four for more work.

His plan backfired as soon as he got home with a single word stuck in his head; It.

The word it was the first he thought of when he saw what Jak had brought in the other day. It. Such a word that took away all real identification and made a person little more than an object.

And he called a little girl an It.

Once given a chance to brood about it, Torn changed his mind and turned into a door shy of his room and into his office. Now it was seven in the morning and he was still listening to reports from the DB section of the DWP.

He had learned a lot about the DWP since he found out that Jak had been apart of it. He learned that it was started in secret by the Barron about two years before the former king was banished and continued after, growing larger and larger until nearly the whole of the Jail was forced to become apart of it. People were arrested for almost no reason, petty crimes like loitering, and placed into the program.

The DB wing was established about three years after the king's banishment. It was fast growing as well, from the look of it, with over fifty children born a year.

Vin started on another report of yet another boy. Torn rubbed at his dry, tired eyes and stopped him. "Just the girls, Vin, or we'll never get done with this. And look for the ones without there right arm."

Vin went quiet for a few moments. "There are 193 reports that match that description."

Torn grumbled at the sheer number of kids and started to rub at his temples. He felt exhausted. "What about… what about horns? How many with horns?"

"Fifty-one."

"Over the last twelve years?"

"Five."

Finally, they were getting somewhere.

* * *

Jak groaned and shifted on the pelt laden bed only to find that he was stuck, practically attached, to it.

He shifted again and found that it was three separate points of warmth, one lying across his legs, one laying half in the crook of his arms and half on his chest, and the last laying where Daxter would normally set on his shoulder.

So, Jak rolled said shoulder ever so slightly to rouse Dax from sleep. His friend grumbled angrily and sent a drowsy eyed glare at him. Jak popped an eye open and returned the look, but without the glare.

"Who's on me?"

Daxter continued to glare at him for a moment but ultimately let his eyes rome on down to Jak's legs. He grunted, "Damn mut." He then curled into a tiny ball and went on back to sleep.

The man grinned and shifted again as he placed his hand on the back of the girl, the one on his chest, and sat up. He immediately saw a green scaled, yellow fuzzed, crocka-dog laying across his legs in a lump so large that the dog covered him up to his knees.

Jak placed a heavy hand on the animal and scratched. Judge, the name of that Damos had given him long ago, before young Jak could even speak, lulled out his tongue and rolled over to his back so that his stomach had it's turn too.

Jak started to idly scratch at the top of the dog's head next, only after giving him a thorough belly scratch, and looked down at the slumbering child in his arm.

He knew, knew for a fact, that the name she gave him was the key to find out who looked after her during the years. It was the start, but a good one.

Jak felt Dax' claws dig in his shirt and soon felt the familiar weight on his shoulders.

"Ya know," Daxter started. "She doesn't look dead."

Jak nodded. "No, she doesn't."

The comm. in Daxter's pocket went off and when he saw the screen, he scowled. "For you."

Jak took it and answered to hear Torn's lethargic voice as he told Jak some news about the girl. The man nodded even though Torn couldn't see and hung up after he said goodbye.

"Torn's found out that Mmayit is most definitely eleven years old and has five files that match her description. He told me that when he finds her, he'll call again."

"A bit small for an eleven year old kid."

Jak hummed in agreement. From what he knew, most kids her age were at least about five feet tall and just hitting 90 pounds more or less. Mmayit couldn't be over four feet and was about sixty pounds.

"If she really is eleven, then she was born when I was still in prison; there weren't any pregnant women in the program." Jak said aloud.

"No? How about those ladies with a little more junk in the trunk?"

Jak started to rub at his temples. He didn't want to think about it anymore.

He was spared, thankfully, when a soft knock came from outside his room - a spacious room in the palace with a tad bit more luxuries than the barracks ment for the bachelor men of the city - and, once he gave them permission, a monk walked in.

The monk had an assortment of clothing in her (he guessed) arms with a few pairs of boots on top. After she laid them atop the bed, she looked expectantly at the girl. Jak sighed and gently roused her then silently explaining to her what the woman was there for.

He should have expected this really. He knew that as soon an unknown child was brought into Spargus, they were officially considered orphans of the city and, until proven otherwise by claiming or adoption, would become wards if the monks.

A second monk (also a female) came in as well with a bucket of water hanging from each arm, one topped with suds and the other clear, and a sponge and towel cinch in her hands. She glared at him before walking past and setting it down beside a drain pipe in the corner of the room.

Most of Spargus was like this, no true running water like Haven City. The only place that had it was the palace and the occasional pump set about the city.

Jak got the message. He quickly made sure that Daxter was latched and left the room only stopping to let Judge out first. Whereas Judge, whose head came to Jak's stomach, started to trot onward toward the throne room, Jak positioned himself next to the bedroom door as a wayward guard.

About thirty minutes later and what sounded suspiciously like a snarl and hiss, his bedroom door opened and a small body attached itself to Jak's leg.

"Jak! Daster!"

Jak was pleasantly surprised when he looked down at Mmayit. She was completely clean with relatively clean clothes on.

What he had originally perceived as wavy hair was instead corkscrew curled, cut free of all knots. Her shirt was a sand tan that didn't reach her knees and her shorts and boots were much like his own, cleverly hiding her deformed leg- something any attacking merauder would see as a weakness. She still had the curve of her spine but it too was less noticeable with proper clothing.

Jak placed his hand on top of her head and gave her a big smile. Daxter gave a low whistle and grinned.

"You, my girl, look cute enough to eat!"

Mmayit smiled back and then hid her face against Jak's hip to giggle. The man and his best friend chuckled at this behavior and took her hand when she offered.

The monk who brought the buckets came out of his room with them, but this time they were filled with the other clothes and boots that didn't fit the girl. The monk who brought the clothes and boots stopped just short of the door and stared at the three. Jak guessed that this one would probably follow them around until Jak gave her the go ahead to take the child - something he wouldn't do, and even if he did, Daxter would beat him over the head for it - or until another monk of senior priority, like Seem, took over.

She did

* * *

Hello all!

I had the sudden spark to write like my life depended on it. It felt nice after my long time away.

So, I noticed that our Mmayit is somewhat based on a mixture of a dog and a cat. The cat for when she does absolutely whatever she wants and the dog for her complete loyalty once she trusts you. Shes quick to attach and stays attached. She also has a problem with people's bubbles and is likely to pop them.

The bit with Torn was made because the more that I thought about it, the more I saw that his words about Mmayit would really bother him. He seems to be the type that once he realizes that he has done or said something wrong, he tries to fix it. He's a good guy!

I am also thinking about changing the name. Originally, the current name was made to be a stand in until I thought of a separate one but I haven't been able to think one up. I'm still thinking on it too.

No other updates need to be addressed at the moment so, onward!

Cerise: thank you!


	4. Chapter four

The group spent the majority of their time inside of the palace walls where only a handful of people were allowed to stay in all day. Twice they stepped outside on a balcony so Mmayit could see the city.

The monk that had been assigned to watch them kept herself unseen though detectable, often by burning a hole in Jaks back.

To say that he had mixed feelings when he stepped in to the throne room was a complete understatement.

Seem stood in the center of the sun bathed room, with her was her usual air of calm, with her hands clasped and eyes leaded. When they found Jak, they closed and she bowed uttering a small 'your highness'. Jak scowled as blood rushed to his cheeks but chose not to argue with her. If he did, shed be the winner and he'd simply be confused.

Seem bowed again. "Orange Lightning."

Daxter grinned widely from his perch and gave her a small wave. "Hey Monk Boy, how'er things running?"

Stepping forward, Seems face didn't shift from its stoic setting. "Things are 'running' well, Lightning. Is this the child?"

Said child choose now to hide behind Jaks leg while sniffing the air. Her large eyes then scanned every inch of the person before them. Only then, did she sneak closer.

"Yeah.," Jak answered. He placed his hand on the girl's shoulders to keep her close. He knew that the monks were trained to be good with kids but had never seen Seem interact with any; especially one like Mmayit.

Seem looked down and then smiled. "Hello, my name is Seem. What is yours?"

The girl tilted her head to the side while repeating Seems name. She then placed her hand on her chest, her eyes seemingly filled with confusion.

"Mmayit?"

Nobody showed that they understand what the girl was asking. She realised this and removed her hand from her chest to point it at the woman in front of her.

"Seem?"

It took him a moment, but Daxter finally got what she was asking. From what the two heros saw of her so far, she understood most of what people said. Seem's name however was used in everyday life and probably confused her. Biting the inside of his cheek, Daxter stated his discovery.

Seem chuckled softly and nodded her head while placing her hand on her chest. She then held it out for the child to take.

"Yes, my name is Seem. May I have your hand?"

Mmayit glanced up at Jak to see if it was ok. When he smiled encouragingly at her, she stepped out of his hold and took the offered hand.

Seem studied the child with a great deal of concentration before she asked where they found the girl and in what condition they found her in. When her questions were answered, the monk frowned deeply.

"Her body is charged with dark eco. I'm not sure if we should consider letting her run low of it. If we ever do, it would have to be done slowly."

What do you mean?," Jak asked with concern.

"The dark eco inside her works much like it does in you. The only problem is where you can go about with barely any at all, she cannot. She was born with dark eco already in her system unnaturally. Then it appears that she bathed in it every day after."

"Aaaand? What does that have to do with anything?," Daxter griped.

Jak turned to his friend. "It means that Mmayit's body needs dark eco to continue working? And a lot of it. I need it, but not as much, to keep me going."

"Then why would we need to purge her of the stuff that she need to keep going?"

Seem ended up picking the child up and placing her on her hip. It would look almost natural if not for the monk's outfit.

"She is still young and can adapt better to the drastic change. It is a hope that we can lower the amount of dark eco only."

Daxter nodded, whether he understood or not was notwithstanding, and sighed. "Well then, guess this is bye. See ya'round kid. Don't do anything Jak wouldn't do."

Jak scowled at his friend. He then stepped up to Seem and Mmayit after taking something from Daxter's pocket. He held up the Ottsel sized comm-link and tied a thing of string around it before presenting it to the girl.

Mmayit took the device and stared at it in awh.

"It has a button on the back," Jak explained. He watched the girl flip it over to see said button. He pressed it down for her and pulled out his own to show her how it beeped and a bright red light blinked. "And if you get hurt, press it. Dax and I'll come running."

It seemed to just dawn on her then. She was going somewhere that the boys weren't. Her bottom lip started to pout as her head lowered as though she were in trouble. She slumped a bit in Seems arms and soon just looked away from the boys all together.

Seem shifted the child on her hip and asked them when they would come to see her. Daxter answered in a slightly dejected voice that they would go up to the temple in a few days. Mmayit didn't look up and soon hid her face in Seems shoulder. The monk turned toward the elevator and, with one final wave goodbye from Mmayit.

Jak watched as the two females disappeared from his line of sight and then rolled his shoulders.

The man didn't like this new rolling sadness that was settling on his shoulders along with Daxter. It was an emotion that had little merit and would often turn to anger, something that was not too far away even today. No, he shook it all away and instead tried to look at the good.

That didn't seem to help eather. After all, kids were little jerks and any wastelander kid was worse with how they were taught to punch first and ask questions almost never when they felt endangered.

Damn, he needed a distraction.

He was about to go find one when Sig came from a hidden room. The towering man had a scowl etched on his face that was soon dropped when his eye and optec landed on the dynamic duo.

"Jak, Daxter, been looking everywhere for the two of you."

Daxter shifted so that he was leaning against Jak's head. "Well, here we are, what'cha need big guy?"

"There's a small nest of metalheads that have gathered in one of the smaller caves close to the sea. I need you to wipe them out. I'm sending a team along with for backup."

Jak nodded and made to tune but was stopped.

"Jak, be careful. I've sent out three parties before you and most haven't come back. Watch yourself and your men."

* * *

Four men stood before him, big and menacing, in relaxed attention. Staring at each of them, Jak couldn't help but feel… small.

It didn't help that Daxter was sniggering in his ear while pointing out that the men were all about two heads taller than him. He sighed and eyed them one last time before he jumped into the sandshark to lead the men to the mission.

"Wait, what are we doing?"

Jak was just about to turn the sandshark on when the youngest of the four spoke up in an insulting voice.

The man was just barely that. He was probably born and raised in Spargus and went through his first trial to become a full fledged citizen. He also apparently didn't know how to show respect to his elders.

Before he, or more likely a fluffed up Daxter, could say anything, one of the others elbowed him. This didn't stop Daxter's snide comment.

"We're going on a mission kid. Sig mast'a told you that."

The 'kid' simply huffed in annoyance and climbed into a spare car while grumbling.

* * *

Jak skid to a stop at the coast of the ocean and at the entrance of the cave.

Just as Sig said, the cave was small, too small for any of the bigger Mettle Heads. It seemed an enigma that three parties, each consisting of six men, met their end here. Everybody knew though that it only took one small stinger.

Shaking his head, Jak jumped out of his sandshark and waited for the others as Daxter secured himself on his shoulder. The man felt a series of small jerks on his back before Dax appeared in his face with a thumbs up.

He nodded and then addressed the men before him with a curt, "names?"

The first to step forward was the biggest among them; he could rival Klever. He had a thick mane of black peppered hair and a plethora of scares making his face look mangled. The man puffed up his chest and spoke in a voice that strongly reminded Jak of Torn. "Names Bodes, m'lord. The sprout is called Lake.", he said whilst pointing at the kid.

Jak hummed and turned to the next man.

This one looked to be the same age as himself. His features were what Keira and Tess would call handsome while giggling together. He simply smiled and tipped his head. "Matthew is the name."

The last man grunt out a small, Harris. His whole face was wrapped up in bandages, making it impossible to discern anything. His voice was too soft; it was almost like he was whispering.

Jak swept a last look over his team and opened his mouth to introduce himself but Daxter beat him to the punch. His friend waved a flamboyant hand at himself and spoke in a fluttery sounding voice. "My name is Daxter. Other names I go by are the Daxtinator, Orange Lightning, and the amazing Daxter! This," he waved his hand in Jak's direction. "Is Jak."

All the men kept a straight face but the kid let out a snort. At this, Dax gave a bark of a laugh and pointed at him. "See, told ya' I was funny"

Jak rolled his eyes and looked back to the men. "When we get in there, stick close and don't stray. We don't know what all there is in there and if they catch us alone, we're dead."

He turned on his heel and took the first steps into the mouth of the cave knowing that the others were merely one step behind.

* * *

Hello!

So, after the first few chapters, I finally decided to do a full on plot. I've been working on it this whole time and am still working on it. So far, I only have half of it figured out.

What I want to do for sure is to make the plot follow much like the games. Saying this, I started to play the games again.

If you're wondering about Mmayit, she will not constantly be with the boys on this adventure. She is safe though, and will be staying at the temple with the other orphans. You will see her again too.

Now, if you have any questions or critiques, please, don't hesitate to say anything. If I can be of any help to you, or if you just want to tell me I've done something wrong, I would like to know.

Ranger Red 2.3: thank you!

Bye!


	5. Chapter Five

The team had been walking in the cave for about an hour with no tail or hide of even a stinger. The men behind him started to become relaxed despite the apparent danger.

Jak was not relaxed, he was so tense that it needed a new name. Daxter was the same, his tail stock still and his ears up in alert.

There was something off about this particular cave. With the only light coming off a small torch in each man's pocket, the off feeling became worse

It wasn't right, the feeling that erupted throughout his chest, the oddly controlled rage that settled around him. It was almost like the rage he felt when standing before an enemy who messed with his life, like when he last saw Veger.

There was a scrape of what sounded like a claw against rock, causing each man excluding Jak and Daxter to jump. In seconds, every weapon was pulled out and brandished.

"Sorry."

The kid. He held his hands up, one was empty while the other had a scabbard in its grasp. The others gave off annoyed huffes and judged glares. Matthew actually said something about 'damned kids these days'.

Jak herd another scraping sound. He cocked his gun and pointed it at the direction behind his group. His men noticed his movement and copied.

The cave in itself was relatively small. The tallest amongst them had to hunch his back to keep his head from grazing the ceiling. The further they went the wider the cave got. He suspected that there was a large dome like area at the end.

The widening of the cave was slowly gradual. It didn't give them much room to move about, forced then to walk single file. It also didn't have any cover to get behind.

In other words- unless you count the many guns and knives- they were practically defenceless. So when there adversary showed its face the team all backed further.

Daxter got tired of waiting for a look at the thing so he jumped from Jak's shoulder to the others until he reached Bodes hunk of flesh and muscle, like a thrown. He then looked down.

Whatever it was, it was ugly. It was small and shaped like a beetle and had a glossed, black, back. Two antenna stuck out from the top of its head, or what appeared to be its head. Underneath looked to show no signs of feet.

Its wings lifted then, both going up until they were pressed against each other. This showed it's rather breathtaking underside, different hues of radiant blue shimmering brightly while small specks of blue escaped the beauty. A second later its grotesque black wings fluttered causing the brilliant blue specks to scatter and multiply until a large dust cloud filled the narrow walkway.

Seeing this, Daxter immediately held his breath and ran back to Jak. Jak nodded at a single look and fixed his scarf over his face. The first two got hit by the dust whereas the last three covered their faces.

The effect wasn't immediate, though.

Bodes took the shot and killed it with one bullet. It struggled for a moment and then hit the floor with a wet smack. The blue mist from before leaked out as a blue liquid instead.

"How much did you breath in?"

Bodes lowered his weapon but didn't put it away. Matthew looked back at Jak with a smile. "No more than a few lungfuls, sir.

"Same m'lord."

Jak nodded. "Lake, Harris, you're in front. Bodes, Matthew, in the center. Dax and I will take the back."

* * *

Torn read through each report with strained eyes.

He found the girl in the many files of DB's. There, her parentage and medical history was recorded for about a year.

She was recorded to be DB257. Her mother was arrested for prostitution and her father was a common KG prison guard. Whereas the mother died in childbirth, the father survived and is now retired with a wife and kids. He apparently was never told about his first child.

He medical records were sound. She was relatively healthy despite everything. The only problem they seemed to have was her stubbed arm. The one claw that poked out often got infected until the Dark Eco took its course. Like with Jak, the Dark Eco helped heal her.

After finding the girl, Torn started to look over the liquidation orders. They were much like the girl with how they disappeared. The only orders that were found were for the older children. The younger ones just disappeared. It bothered him.

The worst part was that he couldn't contact Jak about it.

Torn slammed his fist against the table coaxing a complaint from Vin. He told the Kid that he should stay within range for more information.

Arms curled around his neck and a husky female voice filled his ears. "Why don't you come on to bed."

Slipping his fingers into hers, Torn sighed as he glanced up at Ashelin. "You know I can't, not 'till I talk with Jak."

Ashelin pulled him back. She cocked her hip and rested her fists on them while glaring. "You need rest Torn. You haven't stayed up this long since the wars. You can contact Jak as soon as you get a few hours sleep."

The man glared at his long time partner and wife for a moment until he finally conceded by getting to his feet. He could never win an argument with her, could he?

* * *

The side effects of the blue mist became apparent when both Bodes and Matthew started to stumble ten minutes after being hit by it. Now, almost twenty minutes later, they both were droopy-eyed and tripping over there own feet.

At first, Jak thought that it may be some sort of toxin, but when no deterioration came, Daxter suggested that it may just make you sleepy.

The cave was now extraordinarily large. It could hold them all plus three more, with about four feet of space between each. The two who were fully hit by the mist were laying down on their backs. Harris watched them over while Jak was facing the way the cave opened and Lake faced the other.

"Soooo, anyone know any songs?"

Lake snored and looked back at Daxter. This caused Dax to smile and continue.

"I know a few. If ya beg, I'll sing them for you."

When nobody begged, Daxter grumbles about them having no fun and then -just for the hell of it- broke into song. The song was an old sea shanty that the fisherman sang once he got home from a long day at sea.

While Daxter sang his off-que heart out, a near quiet thrumb started to eco off the walls. Jak got to his feet at the sound and switched his morph gun mod to the scatter gun.

"Dax, Harris, try to wake the others. Lake, is anything on your end?"

The kid shook his head despite Jak being unable to see him. "No sir!"

Lake glanced over the others and Daxter, who was going as far as slapping fully grown men. Harris reached his hand into his back pocket and pulled out smelling salts. He waved them underneath both men's noses.

Daxter was mid smack when Bodes started swinging, flinging the ottsel off his chest. A gun was slammed into his chest and he was pushed up as soon as he was awake. Matthew awoke with a bit more finesse, snorting and gagging on his own breath, but was given the same treatment as Bodes once he was able.

Jak watched the dark cave slowly morph around yet another large thing. This one was bug-eyed and circular in shape and hobbled from side to side. It was about the same as the one from before in color except there was no blue. It stopped a few feet away and started in what appeared to be confusion.

This didn't last long since Harris shot it in one of the eyes, effectively killing it.

Silence surrounded them until… "Well, that was anticlimactic."

Lake snorted.

* * *

They finally got to the end of the cave. It took almost all day of killing the first sparkly bug mettle head and the other ball one.

It was upsetting really. The only surprise was the first one that came up. All he did was knock people out. Though, Daxter could see where that could be a problem. If they were all hit, they probably would have been eaten by the ball one.

Daxter sighed and shifted on Lake's shoulder. After setting for hours on Jak's stiff shoulder, Daxter wanted something different to set on. You know, something that was softer. So he went to the youngest in hopes that he still had some of that baby fat left on his bones.

He did! That did not stop Daxter from having a sore behind though.

Jak stopped and took his torch out of his pocket. The others followed him -monkey see, monkey do- and shined them over the large opening to the new area. This was just a dome with a humongous hole in the center. It reminded him of the one that was underneath Kor so long ago.

The only difference was the blue, violet glow at the bottom. When the kid took a gander, Daxter noticed that it was filled with blue and dark eco crystals.

The ottsel looked up and saw Jak kneel down and picked up something glowing. Just as he was going to ask what it was, Matthew spoke.

"It's a eco mine!"

"Yeah," Bodes answered. His eyes shifted from each clump of crystal. "What do we do, m'lord?"

Jak grabbed a small pouch from his amo bag and put something inside of it. Daxter hopped off Lake's shoulder and jogged to his partner in crime side to see that it was a few small dark eco crystals.

"Grab as many blue eco crystals as you can hold. Well take them back to Spargus."

The men 'yes sired' in unison and went to work, pulling out their own little eco resistant baggies.

The duo watched the others for a moment and then split up to further search the dome. Daxter went to the hole and looked down it just in case something was there. It wasn't long, however, when he heard Jak yell out for them all.

When he reached his partner, he saw that the man found a corpse, or a skeleton, with a disgusting green prison outfit that matched the one Jak once worn. It barely clung to the tiny, bony shoulders.

"Poor kid, must have died in hear." Lake said.

Jak shook his head and gave an almighty sigh. "Keep the crystals that you've got but don't pick anymore up."

Jak and Daxter looked over the bones again and found a small collar, just like the one around Mmayit's neck. Daxter unlatched it from the neck and stuck it into Jak's back pocket.

What was a DB doing out in the middle of the wastelands?

With him and his team back safely, Sig happily sent Jak off to do some paperwork in his stead. Filling out detailed reports about the mission while absent-mindedly scratching Judge.

Torn contacted him once he returned to Spargus and updated him on not only Mmayit, but on the whole of the DB's as well. From what he understood, the only liquidation orders filed were on children over the age of ten. Any others just vanished and put down as dead.

The commander said that he'd look out for the other reports but he had a feeling that they weren't there.

He had a few theories, especially after finding that skeleton, about where the missing kids were. The only problem was that he needed more proof. Him and his team scoured that cave and found no other traces of bones.

Daxter groaned in his sleep and stretched himself out on the bed, effectively taking it over. Judge grumped at this and left Jak's side to push the ottsel off the big bed.

Jak watched the croca-dog slowly nose Daxter to the side as not to disturb his friends sleep until Dax fell unceremoniously with a small thump of the floor. The are was soon filled with curses except of silence.

After the oncoming storm from the north blew past, he would go back to Haven City to find out more.

* * *

Hello

So, first I'd like to explain the two bug things. You see, they are a symbiotic duo. The first one (male) hypnotized you with a combination of sight and smell into slowly falling asleep. It's so the pray will think its unassuming. The second (female) is the one who eats you. While she eats, the male will crawl underneath her large wings and attach himself to her becoming apart of her. I got the idea from the lure fish. The male attaches himself to the female and practically becomes another limb after the female lays the eggs.

Other business!

I've had a hectic few week! Some parts good, some bad. Not going to bore you with details though. What I will tell you is that I'm in my twenties and I've already got back problems. Ug!

Bye!


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